Dangers of Electronic Banking

Theories/Speculation

• According to the "The National Data Center and Personal Privacy," an article published in the Atlantic in November, 1967, the electronic banking system of databases poses a great threat to personal privacy and freedom. A central computer electronic database is capable of becoming the heart of a government surveillance system that would be a means for government observers and even casual inquisitors to look into someone's personal information.
  
  

Time Frame

• Arthur Miller, the writer of the article "The National Data Center and Personal Privacy," also believed that the continual increase of consumer's recorded data and information is sure to increase the risk of errors in indexing and recording. Information is also capable of being distorted by the malfunctioning of computers.
  
  

Effects

• Employees and others who have access to consumers' data and information can misuse information or commit identity theft. Many consumers believe that computers are infallible and are less likely to verify computer recorded data or check for errors. Because of this money laundering is also a great concern for many due to the growth of electronic banking and the increase in financial transfers between states.
  
  

Warning

• According to an ABC News article "Criminals Target Electronic Banking," ATMs have been tampered with and some have special electronic readers to steal consumers' bank card information. Therefore, even in a routine cash withdrawal, data can be stolen. Thieves and criminals today are equipped with various hi-tech methods to steal by electronic means from banks and their unsuspecting customers.
  
  

Expert Insight

• According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, an industry association of banks and Internet businesses that monitor this trend, phishing scams are continually growing. On a month to month basis, they've increased by 50 percent. According to a national survey performed by Mail Frontier, a computer security firm, although phishing scams may seem easy to detect, 28 percent of U.S. adults were not able to know the difference between phishing attacks and a genuine online form.